This present study aims to show the main offensive differences between handball teams that lead to a win or a loss. The samples were collected through quantitative analyses of the Champions League 2011-2012 handball games. This study relied on non-descriptive and non-parametric statistics. The Mann-Whitney U test was used as the statistical method. The variables that show the significant differences in favour of the winners were the goals obtained in positioned attacks, 9-meter goals and 7-meter penalties, which, in the semifinals and final decided who the winner would be. This study shows that the teams who reached the finals and came out victorious have a wide and well-defined range of offensive actions enabling them to involve all aspects of the game, in any situation. This tendency was particularly visible in positioned attacks, which was the main difference throughout the competition.

The main objective of this research is to focus on a systematic review of the literature on handball, to identify potential areas for future research in this specific area of specialization. The most common research topics were identified, their methodologies were described, and the evolutionary tendencies of this area of research were systematized. Within a systematic review of the Web of Science ™ Core Collection, PubMed, and SportDiscus databases, according to the PRISMA guidelines, the following keywords were used: "handball", each one associated with the terms: "match analysis", "performance analysis", "notational analysis", "game analysis", "tactical analysis", and "patterns of play". Of the 245 studies initially identified, 28 were fully reviewed, and their results were analysed. Studies that meet all the inclusion criteria were organized according to the research design as descriptive, comparative, or predictive. The results showed that most of the studies use the statistics available through the tournament organization; some researchers have attempted to find some association between cause and effect in different contexts. The studies focused their analysis on four main variables of performance: total shots and finals, end match outcome, Time Outs (TTos), and the relationship between home advantage. This systematic review can provide useful information on potential lines of research for performance analysts in the field of handball match analysis.

The purpose of this study was to determine differences related to the offensive process between winning and losing teams among teams participating in the European Handball Federation Champions League (EHFCL) in 55 matches across five seasons. The key indicators used in this study are the offensive actions, team possession type and the zones of the field, goals, and shooting effectiveness. A total of 34 indicators were analyzed and compared using Mann-Whitney U tests. Sixteen key indicators are identified to confirm differences both from the aspect of the collective game in terms of assists (9.10 ± 2.75 vs. 7.29 ± 2.65), goals of positional attack (21.38 ± 4.60 vs. 18.20 ± 3.62) and from the aspect of individual goals from 6 m (16.67 ± 3.98 vs. 13.64 ± 3.70), and the effectiveness of shots (68.19 ± 6.83 vs. 59.41 ± 6.33). Winning teams performed better regarding the variables that defined the effectiveness of offensive shots, especially successful positioned attacks and fast attacks. They also had a greater number of assists. The profiles of the most successful teams can help coaches and practitioners to achieve better performances adjusting the training process according the performance indicators that seem to lead more often to success.

(1) Background: This study aims to analyze the evolution of the finalist teams in five years of the EHF Champions League and compare winning teams with defeated teams, presenting their evolution along the competition from the quarterfinals to the final; (2) Methods: A total of 35 games were analyzed, corresponding to four games per team over five seasons. Tendency lines were created according to the 13 offensive indicators of winning teams, divided into three macro categories: game actions, goals, and effectiveness of shots; (3) Results: The results indicated 21 linear tendency lines valid for the study. Winning teams presented five increasing lines (ascending line) and 16 decreasing lines (negative slope) during the competition. Assists, goals from the 6 m, and effectiveness at 6 m shots presented an increasing tendency line for winning teams, and the effectiveness of shots, the effectiveness of the organized attack, and the effectiveness of shots from 9–6 m presented a decreasing tendency line; (4) Conclusions: winning teams have more constancy during the competition. Due to the expected increased difficulty in successive matches, tendency lines tend to present decreasing slopes as teams advance toward the final. Nevertheless, winning teams need to adapt to the increasing challenge, describing growth in some key indicators, and being more regular than other teams.

The main objective of this study was to analyze the influence of tactical and situational variables on offensive sequences during elite European handball matches. A sample of 55 games and 5.857 offensive sequences from the European Handball Federation Champions League, the selected teams were classified as the top eight teams in the league, were analyzed using X2 and logistic regression analyses. Results indicated that positional attacks [odds ratio (OR) = 0.34; 95% CI: 0.28–0.42; p < 0.001] and fast attacks (OR = 0.46; 95% CI: 0.36–0.57; p < 0.001) decreased the probability of success for an offensive sequence by 66% and 54% when compared with counterattacks. Offensive sequences that start in the attacking zone seem to be less effective (~78%) than those that start from a situation of “ball in center.” Additionally, offensive sequences that finished in the defensive zone of the observed team were 3.19 times more effective than those that ended before the 9 m zone. We concluded that compared with offensive sequences where the shot is performed from the 9 m zone, the chances of an offensive sequence ending successfully are 3.65, 3.60, and 2.21 times higher, for offensive sequences where the shot is performed from 9 m, 6 m, and the defensive zone, respectively. On the other hand, many variables seem to impact the performance of handball teams. Nevertheless, a significant challenge remains, and more research needs to be conducted to analyze the obstacles that teams need to overcome while attacking in the most effective way possible.